Disney Releases New Miyazaki/Ghibli Special Edition DVDs

On March 2, Disney will release Ponyo on both DVD and Blu-ray.

The hand-drawn Ponyo, inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid, tells of the story of a five-year-old boy and his magical goldfish, who becomes a girl. The film’s “star-studded voice cast” includes Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon, Tina Fey, Liam Neeson, and Betty White, although the children are new voices Noah Lindsey Cyrus (Ponyo, the fish-girl) and Frankie Jonas (the boy).

Ponyo DVD Special Edition	Ponyo Blu-ray
List price $29.99 US	List price $39.99 US

Bonus features include new interviews with writer/director Hayao Miyazaki and featurettes on making the movie, including sound work.

Accompanying this release will be new two-disc special editions of the following, all list-priced at $29.99 US.

My Neighbor Totoro	Castle in the Sky	Kiki’s Delivery Service

Each includes an introduction by Pixar head John Lasseter, a storyboard presentation of the film, and “The World of Ghibli”, an “imaginative interactive experience” of some kind. I wonder if this means new releases of Spirited Away and Howl’s Moving Castle are planned for some later date?